A prominent British trade union leader has found himself at the centre of a controversy over his past involvement in a humanitarian mission to war-torn Ukraine. Eddie Dempsey, the general secretary of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), travelled to the Donbas region of Ukraine in 2015, a year after Russia’s invasion of the country.
Footage obtained by The Telegraph shows Dempsey posing with a Communist Party flag and alongside individuals chanting pro-Russian slogans during the trip, which was organised by the Anti-Fascist Forum. While Dempsey has insisted the visit was part of a humanitarian convoy motivated by the deadly 2014 Odesa trade union fire, critics have accused him of aligning himself with pro-Russian separatists.
An RMT spokesperson has defended Dempsey, stating that he is a “lifelong anti-fascist” who has never supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has consistently called for a peaceful resolution to the conflict. However, the union leader’s actions during the 2015 trip, including being photographed in front of a statue of Lenin, have raised eyebrows and prompted questions about his political leanings.
This controversy comes against the backdrop of the RMT’s own controversial stance on the Ukraine war. Last year, the union passed a motion calling for the UK to stop sending military aid to Ukraine, accusing Britain of playing a “belligerent role in international relations.”
As the debate over Britain’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict continues, the revelations about Dempsey’s past activities in the region are likely to add fuel to the fire and raise further questions about the political affiliations of some of the country’s most prominent trade union leaders.